Business rates re-evaluation is ‘good news’

The Government’s planned revaluation of business rates has been hailed as “good news” for Lancashire’s businesses.

Local Government Minister Marcus Jones has published a consultation on the revaluation of business rates which will ensure bills accurately reflect changes in the property market.

Business leaders have said for many years that the current business rates system is crippling them and stifling growth. An online petition set up by The Gazette’s parent company Johnston Press calling for an overhaul of the business rates system was signed by more than 5,000 people in 2014. Meanwhile, draft rateable values were being published by the Valuation Office Agency.

John Webber from commercial real estate company Colliers International said the revaluations will be “the largest changes to business rates in a generation”.

New figures published as part of the Government consultation show that the majority of businesses across the country will be unaffected or better off by the changes, with many looking forward to their bills falling.

The Government says that revaluation will reduce bills in the North West by 10 per cent before inflation and transitional relief.

Babs Murphy, chief executive of the North and Western Lancashire Chamber of Commerce said: “It is good to see that the Government is looking at a wide-ranging fairer business rates system, as this unfair tax hammers businesses across the country, before they’ve even made single pound in profit. This announcement has to be good news for business”.

The deadline for the consultation is October 26. Details can be found at www.gov.uk.